Games with Gold: January 2016

It’s January 1, and you know what that means. Well, yes, it’s a new year. But it’s also time for Xbox Live Gold subscribers to get some more free games courtesy of Microsoft’s monthly Games for Gold promotion.

As you may recall, all Xbox 360 games in the Games for Gold promotion are now guaranteed to work on Xbox One in compatibility mode too. So that means Xbox One users are now really getting four free games each month.

Here’s what’s free this month.

Xbox One

Description: This is the latest iteration of a long, proud line of brutal and eminently accessible fighting games that focus on combos, flash, and fun, rather than twitch reflexes and perfect timing. While the game traditionally comes with just one playable character unlocked, Games with Gold gets you the Ultra Edition, granting instant access to all eight Season One characters, 16 additional character accessory packs, eight additional costumes, and a playable version of Killer Instinct Classic from 1994. Get ready to dominate at one of the world’s most enjoyable fighting games, absolutely free.

Description: Xbox One gamers get a return to the good ol’ days of sidescrollers – when men were men, and enemies were easy… as long as you didn’t let them get on both sides of you at once. Beating folks up with a bunch of clever combos, tracking down secret areas, and some light platforming are at the core of Zheros. Set in a beautiful and futuristic universe with brightly colored graphics, a humorous cast of playable characters, and local co-op, Zheros is a must-play game to test out with your friends.

Xbox 360

Description: DiRT Showdown puts you behind the wheel of a variety of rally cars and trucks in a whole mess of racing, demolition, “Hoonigan,” and party events – both single- and multiplayer. Winning events nets you prize money, which means unlocking higher difficulty levels, more events, and deeper challenges. Everything that a serious off-road racing fan could want is here… along with plenty of stuff for those looking to get a little crazy, including events like “Hard Target,” where you start at the center of an arena filled with cars trying to crash into you (with more added as you survive) and “Trick Rush,” a Tony Hawk-like mode where you must complete a series of tricks with your car in order to score points. Tons of fun for the mudflap crowd.

Description: In a cyberpunk Detroit following the advent of commonplace cybernetic enhancements (or “augmentations”) to human society, you play Adam Jensen – a security expert who gets caught up in a (possibly not-so-accidental) explosion and has all of his limbs and most of his organs replaced with cybernetic parts, against his will. This turns him into a sort of superman, but at a cost to his humanity: Adam must always struggle with his connection to mankind, while trying to uncover the nature of the explosion that changed him, the terrorist plots of his fellow augmented citizens, and the government that’s prejudiced against them. The game is hugely open in terms of how you can approach it; you can tackle missions with guns blazing, or via sneaking, or through a silver tongue… or a combination of all three. It’s up to you, but any way you choose to play, prepare to be surprised by the twists and turns.

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